News report on "buyback" programs in Tampa Bay

[GreenStormCloud]

16. I attended a Dallas gun buy-back a few years ago.

I happen to do occasional free-lance reporting for a local paper so I have a press card ID from that paper. I arrived at the start of the buy-back, introduced myself, and asked permission to observe from an out-of-the way spot. The police and politicians were very nice to me and even produced a chair that I could sit in. I was free to walk up to the tables and take pictures of any guns that I desired to and to look over people shoulders, just don't touch any guns without permission. I politely watched and did not attempt any confrontational interviews.

I saw about 150 junk guns turned in, and a few, very few, quality guns turned in. For Dallas, 150 guns is a trivial amount. With all the pawn shops and gun stores there are likely more than that sold every day.

One guy turned in a TEC-9 that he claimed he had found. The TV news arrived to film a spot and, since the TEC-9 looks like a sub-machine gun, they featured it prominently in the news, instead of all the junk. I spoke with the TV lady before she taped and pointed out the the TEC-9 was nicknamed "jam-o-matic" by gun people because of it jammed often and that almost all of the guns were low quality, that one didn't see many Smiths, Rugers, Colts, etc, and not a single GLOCK. Not a single assault styled rifle. She listened but didn't say a word of that when she went on camera.

There haven't been any local gun buy backs since then. Kroger's supermarkets had sponsored the event and provided the $50 gift certificates.

BTW...The Bible also has a passage about beating plowshares into swords. It was a call to arms in ancient Israel.